NEWS UPDATE: FINANCE ACT: FRESH CRISIS LOOMS OVER STAMP DUTIES COLLECTION
By: Nneka Oduada Eze (Esq)
As the battle on stamp duty collection intensifies, there are indications that the Federal Government and a trade union may be heading for a collision course over whose mandate it is to collect stamp duties and charges.
The Federal Inland Revenue Service (FIRS) and Nigeria Postal Service (NIPOST) have for a while now been embattled over who is authorized by the law to assess, collect and account for the stamp duty charges. NIPOST was stripped of the capacity with the recent signing of the Finance Act by President Muhammadu Buhari. But the Senior Staff Association of Statutory Corporations and Government-Owned Companies (SSASCGOC), an affiliate of TUC, has opposed the development.
While addressing journalists in Abuja during the weekend, the National Treasurer of TUC, who is the immediate past President-General of SSASCGOC, Mohammad Yunusa, said that the Federal Government has already been dragged to court over the matter.
He said, “The problem we have is the one that is connected to the Federal Government directly which is about the Finance Act. The Finance Act has given the primary functions of NIPOST which is one of our branches to FIRS and we have challenged the government on this matter even to the court that the Finance Act must be repealed. You can’t take the statutory function of NIPOST and give it to other agency in the disguise of the Finance Act, we can’t accept it. Is there any organization by law that is allowed to produce and sell stamps in Nigeria apart from NIPOST? That’s what they are trying to do but it is not acceptable to us.’’
In addition, Yunusa disclosed that his union would do everything possible in its rights to ensure the move by the government to privatize the Nigerian Communications Satellites is not achieved.
It is not in doubt that unless the court rules otherwise or gives an order for parties to maintain status quo, the Finance Act remains valid and enforceable because same has been signed into law. It is the age long principle that where a law is repressive/invalid or offensive, it is still very much valid unless same is reenacted, repealed, declared invalid or a nullity by a court of competent jurisdiction as was held in the celebrated case of Standard Chartered Bank of Nigeria v. Kasmal International Services Limited & 22 ors, CA/L/437A/2014 delivered on April 21st, 2016 (unreported). The crisis generated by the recently enacted law is worrisome, particularly where the law is less than a year old. The question agitating minds are whether NIPOST made efforts during the public hearings (if any) or debates over the merit of the Finance bill to bring attention of some of these salient issues raised now or it stood by and watched the bill metamorphose into law. While the step already taken by NIPOST to submit such dispute to court is commendable, it expected that NIPOST will now await the decision of the court on the subject matter.